Breaking 181
by Faline1
Summary: More than one Manticorian isn’t pleased that their ‘home’ has been burned to the ground. Max et all meet one such unhappy transgenic and try to show her the err of her ways.
1. Prologue

Title: Breaking 181

Author: Faline

Rating: M

Spoilers: Seasons 1 and 2

Summary: More than one Manticorian isn't pleased that their 'home' has been burned to the ground. Max et all meet one such unhappy transgenic and try to show her the err of her ways. Meant to read like an episode.

Prologue

Command had been silent for over five months before it crossed her mind something might be wrong. On a deep cover mission like this one, it was common for her to go without hearing them for longer than that. However, the timeline demanded her next directive come from above.

She was successfully inserted in the corporation, situated in Lab 5-D. The biological contaminate division. It was of course an easy assignment. Being what she was, biological contaminates were somewhat of a specialty.

When the call came in from Seattle about the virus, she knew what it was and she knew where it had come from. It was one of the earlier designs that they'd tested with her five years ago. She still had the cells inside of her, and they would still be able to kill her target, long ago dead.

It didn't take much to get on the wagon headed for the rainy city. It was harder to accept that she should change locations without alerting her superiors first. She ducked out of transport after landing in Seattle. It was easier than she could have imagined to get a car and get to base.

When she arrived at her home, she knew why security was non-existent. Surveying the burned remains of where she'd spent the first fifteen years of her life, anger bubbled up within her that she wasn't expecting. Couldn't have expected. Her home was gone. Someone had taken the one thing that she'd always had. The place that had made her, raised her, trained her, and given her the opportunity to do so much good in the world.

She heard a twig snap behind her and she twirled, immediately falling in to combat stance. It was an X-7. She smiled. At least a few good soldiers remained behind.

"Who did this?"


	2. Chapter One

Title: Breaking 181

Author: Faline

Rating: M

Spoilers: Seasons 1 and 2

Summary: More than one Manticorian isn't pleased that their 'home' has been burned to the ground. Max et all meet one such unhappy transgenic and try to show her the err of her ways. Meant to read like an episode.

Chapter One

Two Months Later

They still aired the raising of the flag over every channel, at least once an hour. Max had hoped that with so much press, someone might try and talk to them, try to contact them on the inside. They were running out of supplies. They were running out of hope.

She watched the city outside of the chain link fences from the roof of HQ. News vans and police. And not much else. The civilians gave up their picketing a week ago, not that the news people cared. They ran the same footage. And nothing was changing. The stalemate she'd hoped to avoid had been standing over them for half a month now.

It was driving her insane and everyone else inside the complex was starting to crack.

She had to do something.

She caught sight of the shooter moments before they pulled the trigger. She fell sideways, the bullet passing next to her head. She heard it as it disturbed the air surrounding it and her heart was pounding when she hit the ground. Staying still for a moment, waiting for another bullet, she jumped to her feet and started running. The shooter was gone. A spent shell casing was all that was left of the attempt on her life.

"Max, are you all right?" She was turned gently by strong hands and could only shake her head as Alec looked her over from head to foot. "I couldn't stop her before she shot. I'm sorry."

Vague memory of blond hair and piercing gray eyes. The woman, it seemed, was hunting her. "This is the third time Alec. How does she keep getting by the perimeter?"

The pair looked around and Alec shrugged, obviously just as baffled by the mysterious shooter as Max was. "I don't know, but we can be sure she's either Manticore or one of the Breeders. No one else would be able to." The world around them was silent.

Alec touched Max's elbow, his gaze softening as he looked down on the woman he had come to consider his very closest friend. "How's Logan doing?"

It was Max's turn to shrug. She took a few steps, looking around the small alcove where the shooter had been a little closer. "The toxins are obviously messing with his system, but he just feels like he's got a head cold. We're still not sure how much exposure regulars can take without serious side effects yet, but the boys at the lab tell me we're close."

Max had stopped her search, realizing that whoever this woman was she was good at her job. If two X-5's had managed to lose her, she was definitely capable. "Did you get a good look at her at least?"

Alec shook his head, crossing to stand next to Max as she looked up at the spot she'd been only minutes before. "Her back was to me by the time I saw her. Honestly Max, who the hell are we dealing with? The two of us should have been able to apprehend her. And yet, she's taken three shots at you and we've missed her every time."

"I don't know Alec. I just don't know." She turned to look at her friend. Her heart softened as she watched his profile, his face backlit by the rapidly approaching sunrise. He'd become a great asset to her. Since they'd started to build and try and co-ordinate their kind, he'd stepped easily in to a second in command type position.

His help was more than she could have ever imagined getting. She smiled, simply happy that he'd decided to pull his head out of his ass and stand by his family.

Both of them whipped their heads to the left when they heard the gunshot and the following yells. Alec looked back at her and they took off at a dead run, covering four city blocks and following raised voices. Coming to a halt at the corner of 4th and Edgemont, they found a group of X-6's, weapons drawn and pointed at a figure lying prone on the ground.

Max pushed past the circle and frowned. On the ground was the blond, the woman who'd been shooting at her, lying on her stomach. "Where'd you hit her?"

One of the X-6's, Ty, lowered his gun. "My shot nicked her head. It just grazed, but knocked her out cold." Max knelt next to the body and brushed aside the woman's hair.

She was Manticore all right. "Take a look at this Alec. Does this designation ring any bells?"

He took a knee and examined the back of the woman's neck. The barcode told him exactly who the woman was and he frowned. "It's can't be." He brushed off Max's 'What?' and turned her over. He sighed and sat back on his heels.

Max, feeling just a little too left out of the loop, pushes him lightly in the arm. "What? Who is it?"

"325473374181. I-series." At Max's continued confusion, he looked up at her. "She's biological espionage. A virus bank."


End file.
